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Orange Sky 2
WARNING: THE FOLLOWING MAY CONTAIN WORDS AND CONTENT UNSUITABLE FOR SOME. PLEASE BE ADVISED. Chapter 1. Flash "Ugh." Rax said, sitting up. "What happened?" Kat sat next to him. "You heard me. You killed a fucking deathclaw." The memory from a few hours before had just hit Rax. He did kill a deathclaw, but the memories were very faint. Blurry, scenes missing, silhouettes taking the place of the deathclaws. Rax looked down at the deathclaw's corpse, then up at Kat. "I... Killed that thing?" "You're so adorable when you forget your English." "I'm just... trying to wrap my head around all of this." Kat's eyes shifted from Rax to Stella, who was standing somewhat awkwardly with her hands behind her back. "Come on over, Kiddo." Kat said. Stella slowly walked over, and sat next to Kat. "I don't think I've properly introduced you two." "Stella, this is Rax. He's a friend of mine." Kat said. "Rax, this is my sister, Stella." Rax held out a hand to Stella, to which she jumped, before shaking. "Don't worry." Kat said. "She's quiet, but she'll talk to you once she knows you." "Well, that's nice and all... But I think we should leave before more of those deathclaws show up." Rax said, standing up. His legs wobbled, and he stumbled back. "Hey! Slow down." Kat got up and wrapped her arms around Rax. "We'll get out of here, but you need to rest. We have supplies, and I've locked the door so the deathclaws won't come in." Rax relaxed, and looked into Kat's eyes for a second. She seemed sincere, as if she really cared about him. Rax grabbed onto her shoulders, and the two sat back down. *** Rax looked at his digital watch. Almost midnight. Stella was curled up in the corner, sleeping, and Kat was sitting across the room from Rax, reading an old book. "What's that you're reading?" Rax asked. "Just some old novel. I saw it when I was rushing to get you some fucking stimpaks out of the storeroom over there." She pointed to an open metal door. "So... There was a storeroom with supplies... And you didn't bother telling me?" Rax asked. "You want to go in there and check it out, or do you want to complain and bitch about it all day?" Rax stood, walking into the storeroom. In it, was a copius amout of supplies; There were too many useful objects in here to count, especially to Rax; Microfusion Cells, batteries, computer parts, everything Rax needed to build something useful... But he didn't have the space in his bags for any of it. All he could do was stand there and wish. He walked out, limping towards the large vault control pad. "What're you doing?" Kat asked. "We gotta leave. If we travel at night, we won't have to deal with the sun beating down on us, or the raiders." "No, but we'll have to deal with cazadores, and having no idea what direction we're heading." "Look, If we go now, we can get to Vegas by morning. We could get into The Strip. I have a friend that works in a bar in Freeside, he can get us passports, and we won't have to worry about shit like this anymore." Kat gave Rax a somewhat menacing look. "You know what, Rax?" Rax swallowed nervously. "For some reason, I can't resist you. I'll get Stella up." *** Dawn came faster than Rax expected, the browns, oranges and yellows of the Mojave burned into his eyes. He'd been walking a while, when he turned to see if Kat was still there. She was trailing behind, with an exausted Stella on her back. "She alright?" Rax said, stopping to let her catch up. "She's fine. Just hard for her out here. Not like she has much to look forward to in her life, and we're making her walk ten miles to a place we don't even know if we're getting into." "We'll get in... I promise." Rax said, looking away from her as he said so. "Rax, in the Strip, false promises get you a pissed off Family, and a bullet through the skull." "Was that you scolding me, or was that concern I heard in your voice?" Kat simply ignored him, and started up walking again. "Let's go. I can see the Lucky 38 tower from here." The filthy stench of Freeside was a familiar one to Kat, who'd been there a few times before. Blood and sewage filled the streets as the poor roamed around, children playing in what used to be a somewhat-decent place when she was younger. "This place is fucked up." Was all she could mutter. She followed Rax though the alleyways and crevices that were planted throughout the small city. Rax led them to a small building, with a bright neon green and white sign, that read, "Atomic Wrangler". It was very rickety, boards covered the shattered windows, and smoke flooded from the spaces in between them. Rax walked in, and Kat, who was still deciding whether or not to enter, looked at Stella, who was standing behind her. "Kiddo.... I need you to wait out here, okay? It isn't safe in there for you." "Yeah. I'll be okay." Rax sat at the bar, startled at the short leg that was present on it, and almost falling off as it tilted. He rang the small bell that sat on the counter as he sat back up, when Kat walked in. "I don't feel right here. I'll just go play some slots, or something." She said. Before Rax could respond, she was on the other side of the room. A man in a suit walked from a room behind the counter, and at the sight of Rax, his face lit up. "Rax! My old friend!" He shouted. "Jimmy Garret. How's it going?" "Pretty good. By the way, it's 'James' now. How's the NCR work going for you?" "Honorable Discharge. How's your hot sister?" Rax said, chuckling. "'Hot?' When was she hot? Even if she was, she ain't now. Looks like the troll under the bridge from those pre-war kids' books." "Oh? Ah, well. Got any Rum and Nuka?" Rax said, leaning back in his chair. He didn't even notice the short leg anymore." "I'll have the same." A female voice said. A slender woman, wearing all black with red hair, and probably not too much older than Rax, sat two stools away. She must've noticed Rax looking, because soon after, she said, "Violet. Your name?" Rax sat up in his seat once more. She had an accent; one he'd never heard before. It sounded odd, the tone she spoke in, but Rax said nothing about it. "Rax... Nice to meet you." "Yes. It's rare to find manners in such a place, no?" "Depends on what your idea of 'manners' is." "Well, take the barren wasteland, for instance. There is nothing more arrogant that the sun that floats across it's sky, the lackadaisical ennui of it, so preoccupied with itself that it knows nothing of the history of the place below it. And when it tires of us, it leaves us with a trail of orange that stays with us for hours before fading to blackness." Rax was stunned; He'd never heard someone put it that way before, and so beautifully. He didn't think anyone in the Mojave was remotely intelligent enough to word it that way. "And the moon?" She continued. "It is our ever-ready companion. Day? It is there, watching over us while the sun ignores us. Night? It provides light for us, even at the darkest of hours. Imagine a place filled with all suns and no moons, where everyone is a threat to one another, and no one can feel safe. It is this place. It is... pathetic. Oui?" "Yeah. I guess it is, though this place has more moons than you may think. Some just aren't as bright as others." Violet chuckled. "Yes, this is true. Perhaps we could... get to know each other better?" "Sorry." Kat walked over, putting her arms around Rax. "I already got him." Rax almost laughed at this, as she hadn't shown any affection before that point. "Well, then." Violet said uncomfortably, standing up. "I hope to see you again, Rax." She quickly walked out of the bar. Rax finally burst into laughter. "You really meant that, or were you just jealous?" "Hey," Kat said, laughing along with him. "I already staked my claim. Just backing it up." Garret was cleaning out shot glasses, when he pulled out a bottle of Rum and Nuka. "Here you are. Still quite the player, I see." His eyes shifted to Kat who was still holding Rax, and back to him before he cocked an eyebrow. "Alright, Jimmy..." Rax said, ignoring what he said about being called Jimmy, and his last remark. "Remember when I saved your life? You still owe me for that." "Yeah, don't remind me." "I need a passport." Garret's eyes widened. "For what?" "We've saved up. We're trying to find a safe place in the Strip to live... Settling down, I guess." "Well. I owe you, that's for sure. Yeah, I got you covered. It'll take some time, though. Meanwhile, you two can stay here." "Might be a problem..." Rax said. Garret stopped cleaning the glasses. "We have a kid with us." *** As Kat and Rax left the Atomic wrangler, a loud struggler was heard to the right of them, and Kat instantly identified the screams that were heard as Stella's. "No! Get off of me!" An old man, probably about fifty or sixty years of age and covered in grit, held Stella against the wall. "You're such a pretty young thing. Wouldn't want to lose anything, now would we?" He cackled, revealing a toothless grin. "Hey!" Rax yelled as he and Kat ran over. He pushed the old man off of Stella, yelling as he did so. "The fuck is your problem?" "Stay outta this! The girl is mine!" The old man yelled, picking up a large pipe that protruded from a trash bin near the Wrangler. Kat rushed forward, pushing Rax out of the way and pinning the man onto the wall, just as he did with Stella. "Wouln't want to lose anything, now would we?" She pulled her knife from her belt. She kicked the pipe away from the man's feet, which he'd dropped a moment before. "Kat!" Rax's voice was steady. Kat was amazed at how he could sound so forceful while still sounding calm. "He's not worth the trouble." Kat let go of him, throwing him against the wall as he did so. Rax walked over to the man. "Get the hell out of here. I'm giving you a chance, so take it." With that, the old man ran off, leaving behind a trail of dust. Rax walked over to Kat, who was cradling Stella. "I want to leave." Stella sobbed. "We can't." Kat said. "You'll be safe soon enough, I promise." As she spoke those words, silent tears fell from Stella's eyes. "I need a drink." Rax said, though Stella and Rax didn't hear. He reentered the Wrangler, stopping at the bar. "Jimmy." "What?" "Tell Kat I'm in our room. She'll be in later." "Will do... It's a shitstorm out there, huh?" "Yeah. It is." Rax ascended the stairs, entering his room and shutting the door. Sleep was the only other thing Rax had on his mind than Kat and Stella. He could only imagine what nightmares would haunt him tonight. *** Rax woke up the next morning to find Kat, sitting on the edge of the opposite side of the bed, looking at a picture. "Well. Morning, then." Rax said, sitting up. "Morning." Kat responded, not looking back at him. "What's that?" Rax said, jumping to the other side of the bed and looking at the picture. Upon closer inspection, it was a picture of a dark-skinned woman, obviously of hispanic decent, wearing a white dress. "Who's that?" "Our mother. Stella, and mine." Kat handed him the picture. "She's beautiful..." A somewhat awkward silence built up between them for a while. "Your father?" "A fucked Legion slaver rotting somewhere." Kat said, snatching the picture back. "I told myself I wasn't going to be like him. Ever. And hopefully, I didn't, or don't." "Is that why you joined the NCR?" Kat looked up at him. "What?" "Because your father was a Legionary. That why?" "You don't know what you're talking about." "I never knew my parents. In fact, the only thing I know about my parents is that my mother was a whore from the Strip, and my father was a raider. So, no. I don't know exactly what you're talking about, but I got a pretty good idea." Rax said. Kat sighed, standing up and putting the picture in her pocket. "Yeah I guess that's why. Even before I found out that my father was a Legion scumbag, I didn't agree with the Legion's ideas. They pillage, and rape, and expect us to bow down to them. Then, I found out about my father, and I refused to accept what I was; The spawn of a Legion asshole." She walked over to the door. "Where are you going?" "To check up on Stella. She's doing some work for the Garrets, I'd better make sure she's not slipping drinks." After that, she left the room. *** "Don't forget the clean the tables." Francine, James' sister said to Stella. "Yes, ma'am." "Make sure you throw away the bottles, too. Even if they're plastic." "Yes ma'am." Stella said again, as if she were a robot, programmed to say those two words." "If they're half-full, make sure you keep them. No use wasting them when you can water 'em down." "I hope you're not teaching my girl any rotten business tricks down here." Kat said, running down the staircase. "No, only the good ones. Rax still asleep? I think James said he has those passports ready." "No I didn't. I said they were coming today." James came from behind the counter, holding a satchel full of caps. "And they're expensive as hell, so don't take it lightly. The guy should be here any moment with 'em." Rax stretched, still in the room. He grabbed his gun and knife, placing both in his belt. He grabbed his NCR dogtags off of the nightstand that sat next to his bed, and put them around his neck, grabbing his shirt and running out of the room. When he looked down the staircase, a shifty looking man held a small brown package, to which he handed James. "Thanks, your caps are in the bag on the door handle on your way out." After the man left, Rax jumped down the stairs, almost tripping as he did so. "Those the passports?" "Yep," James said. "Three passports, nice and ready for you. You going today?" "Well..." Rax turned to Stella and Kat. "That's up to you two, as long as we get there soon." "I just want to get out of this shithole." Kat said, looking at Francine and James. "No offense, guys." "None taken. See you around, Rax." James said. "See you, Jimmy." Rax, Kat, and Stella finally left the Wrangler, Kat sighing in relief as they exited. The three walked along, talking about the "shitty scenery" as they did so. They finally came to a halt as they approached the gate that was guarded by securitrons. Rax looked at the screen of one as it approached, the face of it resembling one of a pre-war soldier. "The fuck is up with it's face?" He whipered to Kat, eyes still on the robot. "It's one of those MKII models. I think it happened before the war ended, where some asshole programmed the robots, took the Strip for himself, and no one's heard from him since--" "Please present your passports." The robot interrupted Kat, to which she jumped. She nudged Rax, who pulled the package out of his backpack, and handed it to the behemoth. "Scanning." The securitron took five minutes before saying, "Passports accepted. Have a nice day." and moving out of the way. Rax looked at Kat, and grinned. They were in. The Strip was larger and brighter than Rax remembered, the lights almost blinding Rax. He was barely able to see that the sun was setting, and as Violet said, it left behind a trail of orange. "Huh. Arrogance." "What?" Kat said, giving him a puzzled look. "Nothing. Let's just decide where we're staying. Gomorrah?" "Too slutty. Vault 21?" "Too confined. Ultra-Luxe?" "Dude." Kat said, staring at Rax. "That place is fucking creepy." "Right." Rax said. "Guess we're going to the Tops, then." As they entered the Tops building, a man behind the front desk looked up. "Welcome to the Tops, my name is Swank." "Hey, we're looking for a room." "Great, that's 50 caps a night. How long would you be staying?" "Ah... We're looking for something more permanent." Swank raised an eyebrow. *** Rax walked into his new room first, looking around at everything. A working fridge, fluorescent lighting, even a sink (Although it was barely running, it was more than Rax had ever had). "Holy shit!" He heard Kat yell from another room. "There's a fucking vending machine in here!" Rax smiled. He finally found a safe place. Rax searched around until he found his bedroom, falling onto his bed. Relief. *** "Ah! What the fuck?!" "Grab them. Search the rooms. If they get loose, shoot them." "No! Kat! Help me!" "Stella! Put her down!" "Keep him restrained. Kill the girl if you must." Flash. Rax woke up to a large, metal room before being blinded by the lights that came from above. As they turned on, a small, barely noticable buzz resonated throughout the room. To his left was Kat, who was struggling with her hands tied behind her in a chair. Soon, he realized that he too was being held captive. "Hey! What the fuck is this?!" Kat yelled. Violet emerged from the other, darker side of the room. Her face pale, she smiled. "Mr. Rax. It is a pleasure to see you again." "Oh, shit. What is this?" Rax said. "Allow me to explain." Violet walked closer to him. "You see, I am no ordinary woman. This... elaborate trap is one that was fairly simple to construct. I am surprised you fell into it." "Violet, what the fuck is going on?!" "I am a member of Caesar's Legion." Rax looked at Kat. "Bullshit." She said. "The Legion doesn't use women for for anything other than sex slaves and pack-mules." "Incorrect, Miss Kat." She put a soft hand around Kat's neck. "Ever since the loss of the second battle at Hoover Dam, the Legion has gone to drastic measures to kill even the smallest groups of the New California Republic, even--" "Even using their slaves as soldiers; Females, children. Even foreigners." Kat interrupted her. "Correct. Maybe you aren't that stupid after all." Kat gave her a menacing look after this before spitting in her face. Violet's grip tightened. "I won't kill you, or your lover, Miss Kat. But, I cannot speak for your sister." With a snap of her fingers, a Legion Centurion kicked open the metal door to the room they were in, and threw Stella to the ground inside. Violet pointed her gun at her. "Stella!" Kat yelled. "How do you know all of this?" Rax said, staring heavily at Violet. "About us, I mean? Who we are, and how you knew we'd fall for this?" "I have spies planted inside and on the border of the Strip. Some disguised as NCR, others simple traders. You two have very fine tastes, some only a place such as the Tops would offer." "Alright, then. What do you want?" "As ex-members of the military, you two would be somewhat valuable to us. You have the connections with the NCR that we need. You would walk into the base, plant a series of bombs, and from there, detonate them. We'd guarentee your safety, and the safety of Stella. That, or we'd kill each of you. One-by-one." "Fuck you." Kat said. "We don't work for the Le--" "We'll do it." Rax cut Kat off. "Are you out of your fucking mind, Rax?" "I'm glad you've reconsidered." Violet said. "We will get you back to your apartment as soon as possible." "Son of a bitch..." Was all Rax could think. Chapter 2. Bang "What the fuck were you thinking?!" Kat screamed at Rax, back in their apartment in the Tops. "Kat." He said, putting his arms on her shoulders. "Calm down. I couldn't let you or Stella get hurt. I didn't want any of this shit to happen in the first place, but I'm not going to blow up McCarran either." Kat took off her bandana, running her hands through her hair in stress. "Then what?" "For once... I don't know. We could do what she wanted which would send the NCR after us, or we could tell the NCR... But then... Stella..." "Oh, god..." Kat buried her face in her hands. "I think... I think telling the NCR is the best option." "You said it yourself! They'll kill Stella!" "There's a chance we could save her. The Legion is weaker, they won't have too many people there to defend them." "We don't even know where the facility is. We were ambushed and thrown there in the night." "Actually..." Rax said, pulling his watch out of his backpack. Close inspection revealed to Kat that it wasn't a watch, it was a Pip-Boy, a device she heard about when in the NCR. "I bookmarked the location. I had it on my wrist when they tied me up." "What if they catch onto us? They have spies." "We have guns." "Damn it, Rax, that's not the solution to every problem!" "You're not really cursing? You're actually serious about this." "They have my sister, Rax." She sat down on the floor near the foot of the bed. "She's all I have." Rax looked at his Pip-Boy, staring at the marked location. "First thing's first." He said. "If we're going to recruit the help of the NCR, we're going to need guns, and not any of those cheap ones they hand out. We have to go to the Silver Rush." Rax put a hand out to her. "Come on. If you don't trust me, then we lose her." She grabbed his hand. "I trust you. More than anyone. I just can't let her die." Rax helped her up and they ran out of the apartment. *** At the Silver Rush, shelves were stocked with plasma, lazer, and incendiary weapons, enough to supply an outpost of soldiers with. Rax's eyes fell on a large, metal gun with a blue tint. Something told him it was a gauss rifle, one of the guns he'd seen on a Brotherhood of Steel corpse. He grabbed the gun, and a small pack of Microfusion Cells off of a nearby shelf, and walked over to the cashier while Kat looked through laser weapons. "How much for the gun and the ammo?" "4500 caps for the gun, 50 caps for a pack of Cells." "I'll take it." Rax waited outside for Kat, who, after about 15 minutes, came out with a Laser RCW. "Not bad." Rax said. "Looks like it's in pretty good shape, too." "Let's go. Don't want to tip any spies off. What's the plan?" "We still have the bomb Violet gave us. We can use it to our advantage. I'll sneak into a Legion base in disguise, tell them they have a weapons shipment in for the facility, and plant the bombs in a crate, while you go and tell the NCR about the problem. I'll meet you at McCarran." "This better work, or we're fucked, Rax." *** "We cannot afford any more casualties, sir." A Legion soldier said, looking up at his superior officer. "You don't make the decisions. I do, and I won't tolerate the questioning of my methods." "I'm not questioning, sir. It's only that... With the NCR and the Strip as possible threats, there's a chance the Legion won't ever recover if we make wrong decis--" "SIR. Ahem." Rax said, bursting into the room. "What's the meaning of this?" The superior officer asked. "I've come with a weapons shipment; A crate of highly sensitive explosives, to be sent to the Legion Facility south of the Strip." "Ah, of course. Thank you, soldier. They'll be delivered with the utmost care." Rax turned around, and left the room. "Dumbasses." Kat entered camp McCarran. The familiar sight brought back the memories she had with her squad, both the horrific and the comforting. She stopped, looking at the NCR soldiers who stood tall, and was reminded of Rodger, and Carrie, and even Mick. She entered Hsu's office, the familiar scent of paper, ink and cigar smoke burning her nose. "Colonel." "Hmm... I know you, civi. You used to be a soldier before I let you leave." "Yes, sir. I've come to Camp McCarran to warn you, and ask for your help." "Oh?" "You see, the Legion is planning on reforming. They're going to try and take back what they lost in the war. Not only this, but my sister, and other citizens are being held by them, and they threaten to kill them all. There's a base... A facility where they're stationed." "This is a problem. I'll take care of it immediately." "Sir, with all do respect, we have to do it soon. Very soon. Immediately isn't fast enough. Those people are going to die if we don't so something now." "Fine." Hsu said. "I'll send a small group of soldiers to go to this base tomorrow but I can't promise they'll make it. Give me the coordinates as soon as possible." "My friend and another former soldier should be here soon with the coordinates, Colonel." "He's already here, it seems." Kat turned to see Rax leaning in the frame of the doorway, back in his normal clothes. "Hey there." He said, tossing her the Pip-Boy. She looked back at colonel Hsu. "This is the location of the facility. It's not far away at all." "Good. We leave in 0800 hours. Prepare yourselves, and I'll ready my soldiers." Kat and Rax left the room, making it to the eerily quiet lobby of the building. "Kat..." Rax said. "I wanted to say that I'm not going to let Stella down." "Me either. We have to be sure about this." "I'm sure. Stella's part of my family, too." Kat looked at Rax before walking over and kissing him. "Let's make sure that she still is by tomorrow." Rax lied. He still wasn't sure, even after all of this. *** Extras ~~TheOddyssey Kat.png|Kat, Self-created with use of SRIII Initiation Station Rax.png|Rax, Self-created with use of SRIII Initiation station